Collapsible and expansible shelter



J. E. SCHUNIACHER.

coLLAPslBLE AND ExPANslBLE SHELTER..

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 20, i917. y

Patented Apr. 19, 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET1.

I. E. SCHUMACHER.

COLLAPSIBLE AND EXPANSIBLE SHELTER.

APPLICATION FILED .IUNE 20, I9I7.

Witnesses A J. E. SGHUMACHER. ,oLLAPslBLE AND ExPANsLaLE SHELTER.

APPLICATION FILED .IUNE20. 19H.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

Patented Apr. 19

lill' A 4a 3a WLnesses,

J. E. SCHUMACHER. COLLAPSIBLE AND EXPANSIBLE SHELTER.

APPLICATION mmxunazo, 1911.

1,375,420. au Patented Apr. 19,1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

. sound-proof materials.

JOSEPH E. SCHUMACHER, OF LS ANGELESpCALIFORNIA.

COLLAPSIBLE AND EXPANSIBLE SCHIELTIFJR.'`

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. i9, 192i.

Application filed June 20, 1917. Serial No. 175,930.

To all whom 'it may concern Be it known that I, JOSEPH E. SCHU- MACH'ER, a citizen of the United States, re-

assembled for usenor. knocked rdownwfor f storageor transportation and which will have such advantages in use as inherent stability and opaqueness and which, may be constructed of fireproof, heat-insulating andA Shelters organized in accordance with the invention are useful `side-wall and end wall sections or panels provide a shelter of the character above for military purposes, camp-ing, storage of automobiles, aeroplanes, and the like,.and in fact for any purpose for which a weatherproof shelter is required.

In accwordancerwith the invention, `a .shel- V .ftercomprising skeleton frame members and inter-engaging panels is provided.

A highly satisfactory material for the and the roof sections or` panels is plaster board `which is composed ofy two surface sheets of paper or the likev and an interposed plastic composition which forms a sort 'of artificial stone, and shelters composed in the main of such plaster board will have all the advantages and qualities above recited, as well as having thin and light walls and therefore occupying but small space when .the shelter is in. knocked down form and therefore being easily transported. Such plaster board, when properly organized, has great stability-and rigidity, these lqualities being essential in a shelter of this character.

It will be understood that plaster board of suiiicient width and length to permit the forming of each section of a single' piece of plaster board is now on the market, methboard in such large units and sufiicientlg,7 thin being disclosed and claimed in Letters Patent, of the United States No. 1,176,322, and Letters Patent of the United States No. 1,176,860, both granted to John Schumacher and myself March 21, 1916, and March 28, 1916, respectively, both for processes of making plaster board.

The invention has for a further object to Stated which will be relatively simple and inexpensive in construction and organizalplurality 0f shelter units organized in accordance with the invention and connected together;

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional'view taken on the line no2-x2, Fig. 3, and looking in the direction of the appended arrows, the view being taken upon an enlarged scale;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side elevation, of

the showing in Fig. 1, parts being broken away and sectioned for clearness of illustration, and upon an enlarged scale; 4 Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view of'a portion of the showing in Fig. 2,y the view being taken upon a still further enlarged scale, and illustrating details of construction;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary front elevation of the improved shelter, details of window construction being illustrated in this figure, and upon an enlarged scale;

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view takeny on the line fes-m6, Fig. 5, and looking in the 1 Fig. 8 is a fragmentary side elevation of the ridge pole of the shelter upon an enlarged scale;

Fig. 9 is a vertical sectional view of the -ridge pole of the shelter,4 taken on the line ods, which permit the making of plaster4- Fig. 10 is a view, partly, in section, of one Y of the bolt and nut devices employed for assembling the ridge pole;

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional detail view taken 0n theiline al1- x,

Fig. 2, and looking in the direction of thel 2, andlooking in the direction of the appended arrows, and upon an enlarged scale; F ig. 13 is a fragmentary detail perspective view of corner post and wall construction, the view being taken upon an enlarged scale;

Fig. 14 is a perspective viewcof fragments of the side wall panels of the improved shelter, showing a plurality of units constituting a side wall and the mode of interlocking the same;

Fig. 15 is a perspective view of fragments of roof sections of the improvedlshe ter, a plurality of abutting sectio'ns being shown;

Fig. 16 is a fragmentary inner face view of one of the roof sections2 showing a hook whereby the roof section 1s secured to the ridge pole, the View being upon an enlarged scale; and,

view through a joint, lllustrating the preferred manner of joining roof and wall units.

Corresponding parts in all the figures are designated by the same reference characters. Referring with particularity to the drawings, the improved shelter is therein shown as comprising a ridge pole A supported lpon uprights a, roof panels B, side panels and vend panels D. The ridge pole A preferably comprises an u pper ridge pole member 18 and a lower rldge pole member 19 joined together by bolts 20 passing through apertures 18a and 19a provided at spaced intervals in the ridge pole.' The lower ridge pole portion 19 is provided with a longitudinal groove 21and has inclined upper-.faces 22, one at each side of the groove or channel 21, upon which faces the roof sections orV panels B are adapted to lie. The upp'er ridge pole member 18'is formed with a central longitudinal tongue 23 at each side ofwhich a downwardly facing inclined face 24 is provided.

'The tongue 23 has angularly downwardly inclined sides 23"* ranging at right angles to the inclined faces 24. Each bolt 20 is firstv passed through an inverted U-shaped clip 25 and through the ridge pole member 18, through the aperture 18a thereof and then extends into and through the aperture 19?* of the lower ridge pole 19. A transf verse pin or bolt 26 is passed through a horizontal aperture 27 in the upper ridge pole member 18 and Ythrough an aperture 28in the bolt 20, thus firmly uniting the bolt with the upper ridge pole member 18.` At its lower end, each bolt 20 is threaded as at 20A and a thumb nut or the like 20", is applied thereto, the thumb nut '20h having a shank portion 29 and a grip portion 30,-

a circumferential groove 31 being provided in the shank portion 29 and into which` a washer l32, which may be split, is fitted. At

19 of the ridge pole A.

tures in the washer 32 and into the ridgeI pole member 19. At each end of the shelter, and intermediately of the ends thereof, in the4 double unit shelter illustrated in the drawings, a vertical upright a is provided and such vertical upright comprises, in each instance, 'a post` 35 set into the ground as at 36 at its one end, and provided at its other end with a projectingV pin 37 which takes into a suitable aperture in the lower member a At the floor line of the shelter, at each`A `end thereof, and intermediately of the ends 'Y thereof at the vertical post 35, a horizontal Fig. 17 is an enlarged sectional detail transverse frame member 38 .isprovided, such frame member being joined to the respective post 35 as by a bolt and nut device 39, a mortise joint being provided as at 39n so that the transverse member 38 may b'e slightly set into its post 35. Near each end of each transverse member 38, va vertical vside post 40 is provided and such side post is bolted to the transverse member as at 41 and ranges upwardly therefrom to the top of the side walls of the shelter where, at

each side of the shelter, a longitudinal frame member 42 isprovided, such frame member 42 resting upon the inclined upper surface of the respective post 40 as at-43, andbeing bolted thereto as by means of bolts 44 passed through the respective post, the respective longitudinal member, and a roof panel B. Longitudinally ranging base members 45 are provided at each side of the shelter and such members 45 are mortised into the posts 40 as at 45a and are rabbeted as'at 45b to receive the side panels C, such longitudishelter, and such members. range one at each side of the ridge pole from such ridge pole to the respective corner post 40.

The roof of the shelter comprises a plurality of panels B, each preferably composed of a sheet of plaster board 48 and ia plurality of longitudinal reinforcing strips 49' nailed or .otherwise vsecured to the .sheet of plaster board 48 at predetermined spaced points. At Y the roof joints or points of inter-engagement ofthe roof panels B, a reinforcing strip 49 is provided and Vsuch strip 'slightly overlaps `respective overlapping reinforcement 49a is reinforced on its under side by a stripof wood 'or the like 49d which abuts against the strip 49e. A plurality of rotatable buttons or clamps 50 are secured to each of the strips 49d as by means of screws 51 passed through the clamps 50 and into the respective roof panel B, so that as the roof is being as- .sembled the vclamps may be turned to the position shown in Fig. 17 whereby al1 the roof panelsare maintained in a single plane and the joints as between the panels are kept tight. Each of the roof panels is pro- -vided at its under side withl a transverse re nal strips 49 which'range longitudinally of the plaster board sheets 48T At the outer face of each roof section, and at the upper edge thereof the spaces between the reinforcvlng strips 49 are filled with short strips 54,

such strips being nailed or otherwise secured to the sheet of plaster board 48 as are all of the other strips. On the innerface of each vroof panel IB, and on the strips thereof, a

plurality of preferably sheet metal clips 55 are provided and such clips are preferably secured to the respective panel by means of screws or the like 56,v each clip being formed with a portion 55a bent at right angles to the res ective Vpanel an-d forming a hook adapted) to take 'into the channel yor groove 21 i-n the ridge pole member'19 when the shelter is assembled. At the edges of the roof panels which are placed at theA ends of the shelter the reinforcing strips 49 and 53 preferably have their outer edges iiush with the extreme edge of the sheet' of plaster board 48 as no inter-engaging joint is to be made there. On the under side of the roof panels B, a continuous reinforcing strip 56a is provided and such strip ranges across the respective panel at the ends of the longitudinal reinforcing stri s 53. j

The side 'Wallsof t e shelter are formed of a plurality of inter-engagingV side panels C, such panels C being preferablyorganized similarly to the roof panels and each being composed of a sheet of plaster board 57 provided with eXternal-vertically ranging reinforcing strips 58 of wood orthe like, and internal reinforcing strips 59 in registration with the strips 58, allV of the strips 58 and 59 being nailed or otherwise secured to the the side wallmembers C, one ofthe sheets ofI plaster board 57 is provided with a reinforcing strip 60 at its outer face, which strip 60 overlies "the jpint where two plaster board sheets 57 abut. At the inner face of each sheet 57 a reinforcing strip 61 is provided, such strip 61, being iiush with the ends of the plaster board units. Buttons or clamps similar to the clamp 50 may be provided on the strip 51 which is nailed to the plasterboard sheet 57l to which the joint covering reinforcing strip 60 is applied `to maintain the walls in alinement at the joints.

Horizontal battensor reinforcing'strips 62 are applied to the plaster board sheets 57 at their lower edges and at the lower .terminals of the vertical strips 59 and 60.

The end panels D of the shelter are each preferably formed of a sheet yof plaster board 64 reinforced as by means of external vertical spaced strips 65 and likewise Vreinforced by internalvertical strips 66 in registration with the strips 65. Transverse horizontal strips 67 may b e secured at the base of each of the end panels at the terminals of the inside reinforcing strips 66. The end panels 'D may have suitably formed winf 4dows ora doorway provided'therein, one

vwith respect to the sides' of the panels so as.

to tit against roof members as at 68. At the longest edge .of one o f the end panels at each end of the shelter a strip 69 is provided and such -strip is arranged to overlie theA next adjacent panel, covering the joint. Windows may be provided as by providing apertures d in the plaster board panels in the end panels and the strips thereon, which strips may be used as guides for window frames 7 0 and 71, the window frames 70 and 71 being arranged in pairswith the frame 71. interiorly of the shelter and the frame 70 exteriorly of the shelter. The frame' 70 is provided with a glass 72 and the frame 71 ma; be provided with a panel 73 of any suitab e material such as screen or opaque material. The window frames 70 and 71 being of a width to permit the same being guided by the strips 66 on the inside of the shelter wall and the strips 65 and 69 on the outside of the shelter wall, retaining'members 74 are applied to the strips as by nailing, and such retaining members 74 may comprise short metallicbars which roject from the strips to overlie the frames 0 and 7l at the side edges thereof as will be understood by reference to Figs. 1, 2 and 5. The frames and-71 and the orifice d are shaped to conform and at the u per portion of each orifice and externally o the shelter, a sheet metal shield 7 5 may be provided, such shield being shown as of triangular form and having two of its edges 76 and 77 secured Vor abutting against reinforcing members such as the strip 65 and the member 47, while its free edge is flared outwardly and downwardly as at 7 8 to overlie the outer window frame 7() when the same is in raised position, thus preventing invasion of the shelter by rain. The window frames 70 and 71 are suspended from a cord 79 passed over pulleys 80 set into an aperture 81 in the member 47, one end of the cord 7 9 being secured to the window frame 7 0 as at 7 9 and the other end of the cord 79 being secured to the window frame 71 as at 791. In one of the panels D a large aperture 82 forming a doorway may be provided, and such doorway may be bounded by reinforcing strips such as the strips 65 and horizontal ,strips or frame members 8 3 and 84 disposed respectively at the upper portion of the doorway and the lower portion thereof, and a further frame member 85 adapted to lie against the vertical post 35 and be properl secured thereto.

A door 86 may be suitab y' hinged to the door frame so formed.

ln assembling the shelter, the vertical posts 35 are first placed in the ground to the required depth and properly spaced, 'a convenient way of properly spacing the posts 35 being touse, the ridge pole as a measuring stick, the ridge pole being provided Withsuitable indicating marks to that end. After the posts have been setY into the ground, one at each end of the shelter and in such a shelter as shown in Fig. l composed of two shelter units, a postv 35 is set into the ground between the end posts 35, or more than one such intermediate post may be employed. The ridge pole may then be placed in position on the pins 37 projecting from the postsi35, suitable pinreceiving apertures being rovided in the lower member 19 of the ri ge pole A. The horizontal transverse members 38 may thenbe bolted to the posts 35 and the corner or side vertical post 40 then applied .to the transverse members 38 near the ends thereof as by means of the bolts 41. After the' side posts 40. are in position the longitudinal ase members 45 and longitudinal roof supporting members 42 rest upon lthe inclined upp'er faces of the posts the member 42 being provided withan angularly related rabbet 42". Bolts 44 may be applled to-the posts'and the respective members 42, such bolts, however, preferably Y extending also through roof panels. The side wall panels C are applied to the base members 45 as by resting the same in the rabbet 45b of the base member and bolting such side panels to the post 40 as by means of bolts 40a. An outer side post 40h-is provided'at each of the posts 40 and the same preferably extend to a point at approximately half the height of the posts 40, bolts 402 being provided through suitable apertures in the posts 40, the side sections C, and the,

uppermost of the ridgepole members willA be raised by the bolt 'to provide a space wide enough to permit insertion of the` hook-carrying ends'of the roof panels B. The panels may be hooked into the ridge, pole, as indicated in Fig. 9, and the ridge pole members 18 and 19 drawn together by tightening the nut 30 of the screw 20, thus securely uniting the panels with the ridge pole in wedging action- As adjacent panels are applied successively in building up the roof the panels may be caused to abut and the buttons or clamps 50 turned, from the under side of the roof, to maintain adjacent panel edges in alinement. As the panels are so applied to the ridge pole their ends near the eaves of the shelter will lie upon the vrespective longitudinal member 42, and the bolt 44 may be passed through suitable apertures provided in the panels and wing nuts or the like 44a applied thereto, thus securing the roof panels lin place. The end ico wallsmay be applied by setting the same i upon the transverse members 38 and at the outer face of the respectivepost 35 and securing the same'as by means of bolts or the like. The transverse members 38 are provided with a .raised molding or the like 38a against which the end panel sections D may abut at their bases. In localities -where it is necessary to brace the structure to withstand severe Winds or storms, an anchor rod 87 is -provided at each post 40 and externally of the shelter, the Arespective bolt 4()a serving .to bolt'the eye 87EL provided atone end of the anchor rod to the wall of ground'to an anchor 38. A turn buckle 87b may be provided in each anchor rod 4to tighten the same.

In the form of shelter shown as comprising a plurality of units, each with a ridge pole and panels to extend throughout the length of the ridge pole, the ridge poles may be connected as by means of a metal joining member screwed or otherwise secured to adjacent abutting ends of the leaving off end walls of the intermediate units so that long shelters may be provided in single structures for eldhospital purposes and the like'. In disassembling the shelter, the nuts on the bolts extending through the roof panels may first be loosened and the roof panelsv removed oneat a time by unhooking the same from the ridge pole, the ridge pole members 18 and'19 havlng first been separated by rotating the nut 30 of the bolt 20 in the proper direction. The ridge pole or poles may then be lifted off the vertical post, the end panels removed by loosening the nuts on the bolts by means of which such end panels are secured, the anchor rods may be removed by\loosening the nuts on the bolts 40a, and upon loosening of -all of the bolts holding the side walls to the longitudinal base members 45 and the posts 40 and releasing the clamps joining such side members panel after panel of the side walls may be removed. All that is then necessary is to' remove the ridge pole A from the top of 'the uprights 35, loosen the bolts joining the posts 40 to thel members 38 and the bolts joining the members 38 to the vertical posts or uprights 35 and withdraw ,the uprights from their position in the ground.

The panels and other members ,forming the shelter may be stacked or otherwise arranged for transportation, and the knockeddown shelter will occupy but little space.

The shelter may agaln be re-assembled or areced by proceeding Aas hereinabove out- Bent iron strips 44b may be applied. to the posts 40 and the longitudinally ranging members 42, the bolts 40m. and 44 passing through suitable apertures in `such strips.

Having thus disclosed my invention, I

claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent: 1. lA portable house including va ridge pole divided longitudinally into comple mental sections, roof panels adapted to have the edges thereof clamped between the complemental sections 'of the ridge pole, bolts ridge poles,- and further shelter units may be added by mental sections, roof panels adapted to havev vthe edges thereof clamped between the complemental sections of the ridge pole, clamping bolts extending through the sections of transverse strips extending the ridge pole, around the outer face of one ofthe ridge pole sections, transverse pins extending through the said ridge pole sections and engagmg the ends of the strips andthe clamping bolts, plates permanently secured swiveled upon the plates and engaging the bolts, said nuts cooperating with the bolts to move the ridge pole sections toward and away from eacha'other.

to the other ridge pole section, and nuts 3. A portable house including a frame interengaging plaster board panels fitte upon the frame, said plaster board panels being reinforced by strips extending transversely across the s ame and applled to opposite sides thereof in an opposed relatlon :to each other, the reinforcing strip at one edge lof cach of the panels overhanging the same Aat one side thereof so as to overlap an adjacent panel, while on the opposite side of the panel the reinforcing strips abut against eachother, and fastening means connecting the abutting reinforcing strips to hold the panels together.

4. A portable house including a frame, interengaging plaster board panels tted upon the frame, said plaster board panels being reinforced by strips applied to opposite sides thereof, certain of the strips on one side of the panels being arranged to overlap adjacent panels,\while certain strips on the opposite side of the panels abut each other at the meeting edges-'of the panels, A

and fastening lmeans connecting the abutting strips to lock the panelstogether.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOSEPH E. SCIfIUMACI-IER. Witnesses: i

4 H. DAoHLnR,

.WILLIS S. MITCHELL. I 

